Player of the Year

Alexandra Bruno, Garden City (N.Y.)

Alexandra Bruno continued to carry out the Trojans' legacy of
elite scorers.

The senior attacker has been a force all season long, even as
her team lost more games than accustomed this season. Garden City's
five losses match its combined total from the previous four seasons
prior, but the Trojans emerged as a beautiful swan in the
postseason, thanks largely to Bruno's efforts.

In Garden City's win over Eastport-South Manor (N.Y.), Bruno
scored a team-high five goals and added a pair of assists. In a
tight victory over Wantagh (N.Y.) to secure the Nassau County
championship, Bruno proved the difference, combining with teammate
Catherine Dickinson to score 11 of the team's 14 goals.

The duo was effective all season long as Dickinson placed second
on the Trojans in goals scored. Even in Garden City's loss to
McDonogh (Md.), both Bruno and Dickinson posted hat tricks.

But at season's end, it was Bruno who once again stood out as
the Trojans' top threat. The senior earned Tournament MVP honors
after tallying six goals against Canandaigua (N.Y.) to help Garden
City secure yet another Class B state title. It was the Trojans'
seventh straight state crown.

Postseason MVP honors were far from Bruno's only accolade of the
season. She was also an Under Armour All-American and No. 6 on
ESPN's Top 100 after finishing the season with 93 goals and 41
assists.

Spotlight On...

After Westwood (Mass.) played 26 games without a loss in 2011,
two programs decided to toss out the red flag in 2012.

First, there was Lincoln-Sudbury (Mass.), which upended Westwood
in its season opener. Then, there was Needham (Mass.), which a
month later handed Westwood its second defeat of the season.
Suddenly, the Wolverines found themselves with two losses in the
same season for the first time since 2007.

"We weren't surprised," Westwood (Mass.) coach Leslie Frank
said. "It just exposed our weaknesses and gave us something to work
on. Throughout the season, we've been building confidence in the
younger players, just a camaraderie and a teamwork and finding each
other on the field. We're getting better every day."

The losses were surprising, especially considering the
Wolverines had no problem with either team last season. They topped
the Warriors 21-11 in their first meeting, and then won by a
similar margin in the postseason, 15-7. Westwood downed Rockets by
10 goals in their first meeting and by six goals in their
postseason encounter.

"We don't take too much worry either way," Frank said. "At the
beginning of the season where we lost a lot of key players but we
returned a lot of key players and the additional players to the
team are young, we sort of expected that. We talked a lot about
that in the preseason because we had a number of games before our
first loss in the preseason where we were taking it on the
chin."

While Needham and Lincoln-Sudbury are traditional powerhouses,
the veteran coach has noticed an increased competitiveness
throughout the state.

"There are teams everywhere," Frank said. "The competition is
awesome."

Frank noticed the increase in play as she sat in the stands for
the Algonquin (Mass.) versus Longmeadow (Mass.) game, which
featured two teams with a combined record of 38-6. The T-Hawks will
square off against Westwood in the state Division I finals
Friday.

But as the Bay State began to imagine a world in which the
championship trophy was no longer glued to Leslie Frank's fingers,
the Wolverines looked toward the future. Even after the final
whistle twice forced them to contemplate their shattered
invincibility, the Wolverines trekked on.

"Every time we had a tough game, we realized some of the things
we needed to do better," Frank said. "There were some tough
opponents that we just brought our "A" game to. We sort of battled
consistency throughout the season, but what they're showing is a
real resilience."

Now, Westwood is back in a familiar position. The Wolverines are
one game away from another state title.

"It's less about winning, more about the journey," Frank said.
"Everything I say, it sounds so cliché, but it's kind of
true. They love being in the hunt, and whatever happens on Friday,
happens."

Ironically enough, Westwood advanced to the state title game
with a win over a familiar foe: Lincoln-Sudbury. The Wolverines
pulled out the win with their usual mix of fundamentals and
defense. They dominated the draw, 16-6, including a 9-3 advantage
in the first half. When Lincoln-Sudbury came back late to pull
within two goals, Westwood won the all-important draw, allowing it
to run off the rest of the clock.

Frank said that there was no single player who was garnering all
of the draws for the Wolverines. Rather, it was a team effort.

The Wolverines' improved defense was also a team effort. After
Madison Acton erupted for eight goals in their first meeting of the
season, Leslie Frank crafted a defense that held Acton to just one
goal in their postseason meeting. The veteran coach said it was
hardly a complicated maneuver; she had Celia Kondrick, her
sophomore track star, face-guard Acton.

"Teams can work around a face-guard pretty easily," Frank said.
"Everyone is pretty skilled at breaking a faceguard so again we got
lucky and the rest of our defenders were right there with Celia and
trying to push her out and give her the weakest angle possible.
They were effective, but again, with another half, they might have
figured out some additional ways to get open."

Indeed, after taking a 10-2 lead at the beginning of the second
half, Westwood nearly let its lead slip against Lincoln-Sudbury.
But the Wolverines able to hold on, on the strength of a key draw
control, to win 11-9.

"This is an opponent that if there was a third half, they could
have come back and beat us," Frank said. "If there was a series
like professional teams, it might be 3-3 and we would be going into
Game Seven. That's the caliber of the opponent."

Worth Noting...

Just as surely as you can create an endless list of the big wins
St. Anthony's compiled this season, you can create an endless list
of Anne Heagerty's high-scoring performances for the Friars. The
senior midfielder was outstanding all season long in leading St.
Anthony's to a 16-1 record.

"She's dominated in our top games against Garden City (N.Y.),
Chatham (N.J.), Bryn Mawr (Md.) and Manhasset (N.Y.)," St.
Anthony's coach Corinne Broesler said. "She has been a star player
for us through and through."

According to Broesler, Heagerty's talent stems as much from her
versatility as her speed.

"I've coached unbelievable attackers and really strong defenders
or goalies, but she can play anywhere," Broesler said. "She'll
dominate in every position, which is kind of incredible."

Heagerty was pivotal in the Friars' biggest win of the season, a
14-9 triumph over the eventual Class B state champions Garden City
(N.Y.). She scored five goals and two assists in the monumental
victory.

"She does thrive under pressure," Broesler said. "Big players,
they want that pressure on their back. They step up and they lead
their teammates. That's why I'm such a big fan of hers because she
really is big-time. She's going to be an incredible player in
college. She's going to do just as well in college as she did in
high school. She's awesome."

Heagerty's success wasn't limited to one game. She was good from
start to finish. In St. Anthony's second game of the season, a 17-6
defeat of Manhasset, Heagerty hit the back of the net six times.
She later posted four goals and two assists in a 19-12 victory over
Sacred Heart Academy (N.Y.). She also posted a hat trick against
John Carroll.

"She's incredibly talented. She can beat anybody one-on-one and
go to goal," Broesler said. "She really thinks like a coach and you
don't get that a lot with high-school kids." Broesler said. "The
midfielder is not usually the quarterback of your offense but in a
lot of ways she was because of how smart she is."

She is also a force when it comes to ground balls and draw
controls.

"It's hard when the only recognition kids get in the paper is
goals and assists," Broesler said. "If you guys had ground ball
stats and draws and caused turnovers and things like that in the
midfield that are really, really important to our team, she
dominates in all of those categories."

Heagerty's vision and defensive prowess also need to be factored
in among her defining characteristics.

"She sees the field really well," Broesler said. "As soon as
somebody is open, they're going to have the ball on their stick.
Her stick skills are really incredible and defensively, her lateral
speed, her footwork, her ability to break down her steps, to slow
another player down are really strong."

Perhaps most telling was the 5-second pause that ensued when
Broesler was asked what Heagerty needs to work on. Her answer: her
shooting. Our answer: not much.